Pro-Hegseth super PAC to no longer focus on Minnesota

WASHINGTON — The head of a super PAC that had endorsed U.S. Senate candidate Pete Hegseth says his group will not spend money on the Senate race in Minnesota now that Hegseth is out.

Reclaiming Freedom, a D.C.-based super PAC supporting Republican candidates and flipping control of the U.S. Senate, had backed Hegseth’s bid prior to the May 18 Minnesota Republican convention where Kurt Bills emerged as the party’s endorsed candidate. Hegseth and a third candidate, Dan Severson, chose not to challenge Bills in a primary, clearing the way for him to take on Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar in November.

With Hegseth out of the race, Reclaiming Freedom founder Brian Wise said in an email, “Reclaiming Freedom will not be making any expenditures in the Minnesota Senate race.”

Reclaiming Freedom endorsed six candidates nationally last week, all in states currently represented by Democrats and most in races rated by political prognosticators as toss-ups heading into the fall.

Klobuchar is considered one of the safest incumbents in the country, and with more vulnerable Democrats on the ballot elsewhere, outside groups on both sides will probably avoid spending a lot of money in Minnesota unless polls show Bills closing the gap.

“Our mission is to support candidates who we believe can win against their Democrat opponents in November so that we can begin to move this country forward and stop the Obama/ Reid government from their assault on the freedoms of all Americans,” Wise said.